There is no hiding from the impact agenda. The impact weighting of the Research Excellence Framework has been increased for 2021, and more recently the UK Government announced a new funding stream for knowledge exchange. But achieving impact isn’t easy, especially for researchers early in their careers. If you ever have a spare week, or ten, it’s worth reading through some of the 6,637 REF impact case studies on the HEFCE website. There are some brilliant and fascinating examples of how researchers have achieved impact, but what strikes me most is how different impact looks across different subjects. At the risk of being flippant, among many of the medical or technological examples there is a familiar pattern and a clear route to impact: make breakthrough; license drug/technology; save lives/£millions. For social and political science (not to mention economics, languages, education, philosophy, etc.) the route to impact is much more fragmented. Among the 97 sociology case studies, for example, impact comes from numerous briefings of government officials and parliamentarians, before the academics join “networks” and “committees” discussing their research and wider issues. Their research is covered by national media, they meet even more people – practitioners or third sector campaigning organisations to pass on their knowledge. And, after all that, and often a good deal more, sometimes there is a policy or practice change that can be pointed to as a direct impact, sometimes not. Central to much of the impact is “access”. Prominent and experienced academics are more likely to get on the committees, know the right journalists and government officials, and have links into third sector organisations, etc. I worked with Professor Sir John Curtice, of election night fame, for a number of years. He didn’t need much support. I advised and facilitated, but after 30 years in the game he knew Whitehall (and Holyrood) inside and out – and they knew him. But many researchers, especially at the start of their careers, don’t... Who is the author? Pick the correct answer from the following options:  A. researcher  B. not enough information  C. government employee  D. professor
B

Happened to me while visiting Chicago a few weeks ago. A young couple with a baby in a pram boarded a crowded bus. The bus driver would not pull out of the stop until the pram was secured in the wheelchair chocks, however an elderly women wouldn’t give up her seat (seat needed to be folded up in order to make room for the pram in the wheelchair holding apparatus). We sat there for about 4–5 minutes while the driver, the mother and the elderly lady argued. At the end, my wife and I offered our seats (more like a commanding, cajoling, what-she-wanted-to hear, kind of discourse), and the lady moved into our seats. The young couple locked down their pram, and the bus took off. Meg and I stood for the rest of the trip. She was really annoyed over having to move, and there was some baggage attached to her situation—I hate to have to mention the racial aspects here but it’s an important aspect of the story. Most of the passengers were younger white folks (bus was heading through a neighborhood where re-gentrification had taken place). The elderly woman was at least 75 years and the only black person in the front of the crowded bus. She was sitting in a designated seat reserved for elderly or handicapped, and obviously she had earned her status to claim that seat. Unfortunately, it was also the one seat that needed to be vacated if the wheelchair equipment got used. As the bus rode on, her anger simmered. She asked me what I (middle-aged white guy) would do in a spot like that. All I could answer was to offer it up to God. Hot day, no air conditioning on the bus, people just want to get to their destinations. What month of the year did the even happen? Pick the correct answer from the following options:  A. July.  B. not enough information  C. August.  D. September.
A

SINGAPORE — Envoys from the United States and North Korea are holding talks to iron out any last-minute differences before Tuesday's historic summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters that veteran diplomat Sung Kim is leading the U.S. delegation in a working group meeting Monday at the city-state's Ritz Carlton hotel. The North Korea side is being led by Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui. Monday's meeting is apparently aimed at narrowing the gap between the U.S. and North Korea over the demand for North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons. President Trump expressed confidence about his meeting upon his arrival in Singapore Sunday, telling reporters after stepping down from Air Force One that he his feeling "very good" about Tuesday's summit. Ahead of his arrival, Trump acknowledged he is heading into “unknown territory” for the meeting Tuesday. In response to a question from VOA News just before heading to Asia from the Group of Seven summit in Canada, Trump said “I really feel confident” about the unprecedented encounter between a sitting American president and a member of the family dynasty which has maintained iron-fist control over one of the world’s most reclusive countries for three generations. Trump added that he believes Kim, half the age of the American president, “wants to do something great for his people.” But Trump cautioned that Kim “won’t have that opportunity again” if the talks do not go well -- describing this opportunity for diplomacy with the United States as a “one-time shot.” Trump and others in his government have said advancement has been made on obtaining a commitment from Kim to give up all his nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles. Progress could lead to a peace treaty and formally end a state of war on the Korean peninsula, which has persisted for nearly 70 years. Whether such a deal can be done, Trump declared on Saturday, is something he will know almost... What is probably true about the outcome of the summit? Pick the correct answer from the following options:  A. The Korean War will persist for another 70 years.  B. It will formally bring an end to a state of war on the Korean peninsula.  C. not enough information  D. If the summit goes poorly, U.S.-North Korean relations will decline.

D